Art Basel is clearly back, with attendees unmasked (but fully vaccinated) unable to socially distance with huge crowds taking up physical space at the fair, restaurants and tables at gallery booths talking about sales and waiting their turn to buy. With galleries from Germany, specifically Berlin, taking up much of the allotted gallery spaces, and the number of galleries from Asia and the United States way down, art was often comical, nature- oriented and lower-priced than before Covid, but selling briskly. Exaggeration ruled as some galleries claimed sales of more pieces than they displayed, but fabrication is part of artmaking and selling. Big work was selling to private individuals, not only museums and large collections open to the public. Installations followed the children’s poem of some being very, very good and some awful. There was an emphasis on scientific explanations of … [Read more...] about MAKING THEIR WORLDS OURS: BASEL WAS A REMINDER OF WHY WE BUY, LOOK AT, ART
Reviews
“WE ARE HUMAN BEINGS”: POWERFUL ART FROM GUANTÁNAMO BAY AT CATAMOUNT
Featuring nearly 100 evocative works, “Art from Guantánamo Bay” features the artwork of six men detained at the United States military prison camp in Cuba for as long as 20 years without being charged or convicted of a crime, all of whom have been cleared for release — although two currently remain in detention. The exhibition has a unique local connection because of the work several lawyers did on behalf of detainees. Artist- detainee Abdul Zahir was a client of St. Johnsbury attorneys Robert Gensburg and David Sleigh, who volunteered for over 10 years with the Guantánamo Bay Bar Association, a nationwide group of lawyers assembled by the Center for Constitutional Rights, a nonprofit civil liberties law firm providing legal representation for detainees. Gensburg represented Zahir and helped him earn his freedom as a case of “mistaken identity” after 14 years of captivity; Zahir … [Read more...] about “WE ARE HUMAN BEINGS”: POWERFUL ART FROM GUANTÁNAMO BAY AT CATAMOUNT
BREAKING BARRIERS: COPLEY SOCIETY OPEN CALL RESULTS IN A UNIFYING THEME
Throughout my life, I’ve been curious about the people who I share public spaces with, be it on a bus, train, sidewalk or coffee shop. Rarely do I strike up a conversation to fill in the details of my impressions, instead leaving my own to serve as the backdrop for life’s great show. I’ve gotten greater insight into the lives of others through looking through images of the work that’ll be on display this July and August in the Copley Society of Art’s “Crossing Borders” national show. I’ve found myself captivated by Robert Ortiz’s “Una De Muchas” photograph of faces staring out from a commuter bus or train, Karen Israel’s “Another Passenger” pastel painting of a man on a subway train and Viktoria King’s “In the Passage,” capturing in oil a man walking down a not so wide street, his body language suggesting he is seemingly holding a package, walking in the opposing direction of an … [Read more...] about BREAKING BARRIERS: COPLEY SOCIETY OPEN CALL RESULTS IN A UNIFYING THEME
GOOD VIBES, UNAPOLOGETIC LOVE: EVERSLEY & FRIENDS INSPIRE AT HOPKINTON ARTS
Can making art or looking at art help us to better understand our fears, challenges and have an impact on life choices? This summer, the Jamaal Eversley-curated “Eversley & Friends: Bold & Beautiful” allows us to understand the role of the arts in healing processes. As a young boy, Eversley was criticized for not coloring inside the lines. As a young adult, he became a multidisciplinary artist. His mission is to inspire others, spread love and boost people’s self-esteem. Eversley’s artwork is layered with messages of peace, empathy, compassion, friendship and cooperation. Influenced by the West Indian island of Barbados, his work presents lively and bold colors, abundant creativity, good vibes and unapologetic love – Eversley’s main brand. In elementary school, Eversley was teased and associated with “Steve Urkel,” a made-up sitcom character, the quintessence of a geek or … [Read more...] about GOOD VIBES, UNAPOLOGETIC LOVE: EVERSLEY & FRIENDS INSPIRE AT HOPKINTON ARTS
PAAM’S TASTEFUL COUNTERBALANCE: ZEHRA KHAN SOLO SHOW COMPLIMENTS DE GROOT COLLECTION
The natural world is fully celebrated in two glorious shows at the Provincetown Art Association and Museum (PAAM) this summer. “Art of the Garden: Selections from the Pat and Nanno de Groot Collection” are on view through July 24. “Your Everyday Myths,” a solo exhibition by Zehra Khan, runs through August 28, with a public reception on July 22. “Art of the Garden,” curated by PAAM CEO Christine McCarthy, centers on the work of Dutch-born Nanno de Groot (1913-1963). He started making art in 1948 at 35 years old, (take heart, late bloomers.) Self-taught, de Groot wrote in his artist statement that “in moments of clarity of thought, I can sustain the idea that everything on earth is nature, including that which springs forth from a man’s mind and hand. A Franz Kline [painting] is nature as much as a zinnia.” De Groot considered himself an American Abstract Expressionist as he came … [Read more...] about PAAM’S TASTEFUL COUNTERBALANCE: ZEHRA KHAN SOLO SHOW COMPLIMENTS DE GROOT COLLECTION
AN ABOVE AVERAGE SUCCESS RATE: TRIENNIAL OF CHANGE AT DECORDOVA & FRUITLANDS
Switching their usual Biennial presentation gears due to pandemic impediments, the curators at deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum in Lincoln, Massachusetts decided instead to develop “New England Triennial 2022.” The result, on view through September 11, is a dual exhibition created in participation with Fruitlands Museum in Harvard, Massachusetts. These venues are under the umbrella of the Trustees of Reservations. According to deCordova Chief Curator Sarah Montross, they had been looking to partner on something and the Triennial was that opportunity. They are roughly 20 minutes apart by car and upon arrival, visitors encounter stunning landscapes at both locations. Except for one individual artwork, the “New England Triennial 2022” unfolds inside the museums’ buildings where audiences encounter visual statements that explore diversity, environment and issues of … [Read more...] about AN ABOVE AVERAGE SUCCESS RATE: TRIENNIAL OF CHANGE AT DECORDOVA & FRUITLANDS